Fearsome Sight

Yesterday, our good friend Jayne came to join us on our walk. As usual, the weather was a little unpromising, so, with umbrellas as insurance, we set out for the 'farm walk.' The paths are fringed with the statuesque forms of Angelica at the moment, their purplish stems contrasting nicely with heads of frothy, creamy flowers.

A common wildflower, this member of the carrot family was cultivated widely in the past as a vegetable. The stems were eaten raw and the leaves would be boiled into broth or stews.

I'm sure we can all remember those short strands of candied angelica stem, bright green and horrible-tasting, which adorned many a special-occasion-trifle in the 1970's.

Having manged to avoid any rain, we headed home for coffee, before Jayne took us out for lunch as an early celebration of my fiftieth birthday - which is looming ever closer! As we tucked in to our fish and chips and glass of Shiraz (all very delicious), Jayne thought it would be a good idea to snap Malcolm and me at the table, so that I might appear on this blog for possibly the first time. BAD IDEA. I have always hated having my picture taken - and now it's obvious why! Despite appearances, I hadn't already finished off one bottle of wine and was well on the way through a second - sadly, It's just my usual, fearsome countenance!

So, thanks Jayne for the lovely lunch and birthday greetings. But please, don't take any more pictures of me - it scares the horses!